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Group seeks funds for dental clinic

Welsh Mountain is running out of time to raise a grant to open a much-needed dental clinic in Lebanon

By CHRIS SHOLLYLebanon Daily News

Updated:
07/23/2012 03:45:14 PM EDT

A Lancaster County medical center's hopes of opening a dental clinic in Lebanon County to serve Medicaid recipients and low-income, uninsured residents could be put on hold unless the community can meet a local match of $170,000 soon.

A deadline to raise this amount is fast approaching, and the center is nowhere near that amount, Fred Bogner, director of Community Outreach for Welsh Mountain Health Centers in New Holland, told the Lebanon County commissioners last week. Bogner was seeking financial assistance from the county board.

"We have over 16,000 Medicaid recipients and low-income, uninsured residents in Lebanon County," he said. "The Pennsylvania Department of Welfare can say there is only one practicing dentist that sees Lebanon patients. We actually see more patients from Lebanon an hour away in New Holland than Lebanon treats."

In April 2011, Lebanon Ridge Community Health Center opened an office at 840 Norman Drive in North Cornwall Township. At that time, center officials said they were pursuing a federal grant to open a separate dental clinic. The center received a $1.68 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services last year.

In order to get the grant, the center secured 31 letters of support from Lebanon County organizations and lawmakers, including the county, local state representatives and Congressman Tim Holden, 13 human service agencies, the Lebanon Valley Chamber of Commerce and four of the six school districts.

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"It is our opinion that 31 people from a county submit letters of support that really says a county is behind this, this is a strong need, and the feds look very favorably on it," Bogner said.

The center's plan includes 12 operating rooms and five dentists. Bogner estimated the clinic could handle between 13,000 and 15,000 patients a year.

The center has found a location for the clinic, Bogner said. But before plans can move forward, Welsh Mountain must raise $170,000, or 10 percent of the grant amount, as a local match.

"To date, I have met or spoken with every elected official and most foundations," he said. "I have been in communication with private businesses."

Bogner said the center is also in the process of applying for a state grant.

The center has received an extension until the end of September to raise the local match.

"By the end of September, we must move on a property," he said. "We must have submitted environmental studies and building studies. The federal government takes a 10-year interest in the property, so they want to make sure we are getting something good. It can't have any environmental problems. So for us to begin acting on that we must get moving soon."

So far, the center has not received any significant funding toward its goal.

"At this point, in spite of having spoken to a long list of agencies and foundations, we had one person this morning offer $100," Bogner said.

He pointed out that $170,000 to leverage $1.68 million to build a dental office "is a pretty good deal."

On Monday, Terri Trimble, CEO of parent company Welsh Mountain Health Centers, said the company's board of directors has decided that, unless the money can be raised soon, it will not move forward with the dental clinic in Lebanon.

In the past two years, she said, the company has undertaken two large projects, opening Lebanon Ridge Health Center and an expansion and renovation of the Welsh Mountain facilities in Lancaster County.

"We've extended ourselves to Lebanon, and we simply don't have the funds to put into the clinic," she said.

She pointed out that the company has seen a significant increase in the number of uninsured people seeking services. That, along with the weak economy, made last year a tough one for the company.

The company's board of directors "can't take a risk and put the care of 9,500 people that we currently serve - 1,500 of them in Lebanon - at risk," she said.

Bogner told the commissioners he expects the clinic will operate at an estimated $80,000 loss for the first four months of operation, but after that it would stabilize somewhere between $10,000 and $13,000 a month.

"Our board has asked to know or see substantial progress in raising these (matching) funds," he said.

Trimble said some entities from which they have requested funding are going through the process and may give, but until these entities' boards meet she will not know what, if any, funding the center may get.

A number of entities were enthusiastic about the clinic last year when the center applied for the federal grant, she said. But a combination of events - tighter funds, investments shrinking and the economy - have made it difficult for those entities to contribute this year. In addition, some funds have donor restrictions that don't allow the use of money for construction.

Bogner said the dental clinic would have significant savings for the community, including Good Samaritan Hospital.

"We are going to cut dental visits to their emergency room, which is the most expensive place to treat, especially if we are talking about people who can't afford to pay," he said.

In fiscal year 2012, Lebanon Ridge Community Health served 1,563 unduplicated patients, and 97 percent fell below poverty level, he said. Of these, 6.5 percent have commercial insurance, while the rest are uninsured, self paid, or under Medicaid or Medicare. And 69.1 percent are women under age 45 and their dependent children, while 46.6 percent are under the age of 18.

"This is the kind of thing where everybody we have met with - I believe that number is 40 to 50 at the moment - has patted us on the back and said, 'What a great cause this is, and we are glad you are out there championing it. We know you are going to do it.' But after two months of that, we've got somebody who donated $100 this morning when I sent out an email to all of the human service agencies saying we are not there and the grant is going to expire soon."

County Commissioner JoEllen Litz suggested in-kind contributions as a possible way to raise the local match. Bogner said he was not sure that could be used in this case, but he would check on it.